The Blind Dragon Rider
by Ruatha's girl
Summary: Meera is a helper in the Harper Hall kitchens, who has always dreamed of being a dragon rider. There is only one problem, she's blind.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: Pern isn't mine. If it was, I certainly wouldn't live where I do now!!!

A/N I have made a few changes in this story, and changed the timeline, so I can make up my own characters. I hope everyone likes it. Please review with suggestions and polite constructive criticism. No flames, please. Oh, and please point out any grammatical errors, as I am completely blind: therefore, I might have missed some. And, now, here is the rewrite

The Blind Dragon rider

Chapter 1: Harper hall.

Meera shook her long hair back behind her shoulders, and searched on the counter for a wooden spoon. She began stirring ferociously the contents of the huge pot in front of her. She figured she could take some of her anger out on tonight's evening meal, and it wouldn't mind. She hated being stuck in the kitchens like this. She felt useless, and always had, at least ever since she could remember. Tonight was the Turnover festivities, and, as usual, Meera felt like she was only in the way. So, she did the only thing she was good at, cooking.

A couple of years ago she had been able to play guitar, but that was pointless now. She had burned herself in a cooking accident, and now her hands were stiff and not very sensitive anymore. She had always wanted to be a Harper, but now she thought that was pointless.

Since she could remember, there were dreams of being a dragon rider, but no dragon would choose a blind girl, with stiff hands as a partner. There was no point in hoping, so she might as well accept her place in life, and put all of her childhood dreams behind her. She was always going to be a helper at Harper Hall, never a Harper, and definitely never a dragon rider, so what was the use of pining over something that she couldn't change.

As she stirred the pot, a bugle sounded from outside. Guests weren't supposed to show up this early. The festivities didn't begin until after sundown, So, Meera wondered, what were dragons doing hear, now! Suddenly, there was a loud commotion in the hallway. Seria, another kitchen helper, burst in through the double doors.

"Meera, the dragons are here on search!" she exclaimed. Then she turned around and ran back out, towards the courtyard.

Oh, what the heck, Meera thought. She trailed the wall, following behind Seria in to the warm morning sun. Meera could hear many people already crowded in the courtyard. Seria told her there was a blue dragon, with three more dragons strung out behind him, one brown, and two greens. There wasn't room for all of them to land. They were here to convey the searched candidates back to Fort Weyr.

"I am A'rel, and this is Teerrath. We are here on search. I see we have quite a crowd." The rider of the blue dragon said. "Well, Teerrath, what do you think?"

The blue's eyes whirled as he spoke to his rider. _"We may have hit home this time."_

Meera couldn't help but hope, though she figured it was probably pointless. Teerrath turned his head to look at everyone in the courtyard. His gaze rested on Meera. "_This one has the strongest potential out of everyone I see here." _Meera jumped in surprise. She had actually heard Teerrath's voice in her head. Maybe she was imagining things, or finally going crazy. _"No, you're not going crazy."_ Came the voice again. _"You can hear us, or at least me."_ Meera just sighed.

"Well," said A'rel. "We have our first candidate, if she accepts."

Meera felt a push from behind. "The dragon rider is looking at you." Seria whispered.

Of course, Meera had already figured that out, but she stumbled forward. "You mean me, sir? But I can't see. I would be useless for a dragon."

"Well, that's for the dragons to decide," A'rel said. "We've never had a blind rider before, but there's a first time for everything. If you impress, you will have to work harder to do well in your classes. Do you accept the search?"

"Yes." Meera squeaked. She was flooded with many emotions, shock, joy, worry, hope, confusion. She put her hand out, and stepped forward. A'rel grasped it, and helped her up onto Teerrath's back.


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: Pern isn't mine. If it was, I certainly wouldn't live where I do now!!!

Chapter 2: Arrival

Three more candidates were chosen. Then, Teerrath headed the procession back towards Fort Weyr. Meera Clung to A'rel's back as they went between. She was so caught up in her dreams that the cold didn't even bother her.

"Well you are the calmest one I've seen so far for your first time traveling between." A'rel said, as they popped out over Fort Weyr.

Teerrath back-winged and landed gently on the bowl floor. A'rel slid down and reached up to help Meera off his back. R'lon, the Fort weyr-leader, strode towards them.

"Is this one of our new candidates for the hatching?" he asked.

"Yes, she's Meera, from Harper Hall," A'rel said.

"Nice to meet you, Sir," Meera said shyly.

"Just call me R'lon. We're not very formal around here. Good luck in the hatching."

"I hope I'm not in the way," said Meera. "With my vision impairment."

"Well, we've never had a blind dragon rider before!" said R'lon with some surprise. "But no matter, there's a first time for everything I suppose. I just wonder how you'll fight Thread, and go between."

A'rel led Meera to her room in the weyrling barracks, and introduced her to her roommate, a girl named Alya. Meera paced around the room, getting the feel for where everything was. After arranging her things, she sat on her bed.

"What time is dinner?" she asked Alya. "I've not eaten all day today."

"Well, tonight's Turnover feast, so you will have plenty to eat and drink!" laughed Alya. "Until then, which is in about three hours, I think I'll take a knap."

That sounded good to Meera, so she stretched out on her bed, and soon fell asleep. She dreamed about the hatching, and her impression of a queen dragon. When she awoke, the dream felt so real to her that she experienced twinges of sadness while she lay there thinking. She wondered if all of this was really worth it. She hoped it wouldn't turn out to be just another big disappointment in her life.

Meanwhile, R'lon pulled A'rel aside. "Are you sure about this?"

Well, Teerrath said she was the strongest possibility on search, and he hasn't ever been wrong," A'rel said. "And she seems capable enough, and very independent."

"All right then, we'll just have to wait and see what happens, let the dragons choose," R'lon said. "I just don't know how we will get her through the classes, or how she will fight or even go between."

"Well, only time will tell," A'rel answered. "I also discovered she can hear other dragons."

"Well, maybe that will help her. I don't know."


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: Well, I don't suffer from delusions, and I'm not in the mood for a lawsuit, so, alas, Pern still isn't mine.

Chapter 3: The Feast

Later that evening, Meera was filled with excitement at meeting everyone at the feast. She loved listening to the music, and she adored good food. The cooks always did their best dishes for the feasts, especially Turnover. Meera put her best dress on, and followed the sound of music and people to the dining hall.

"Hey, Meera," a voice called. Over here."

Meera turned towards the voice, and headed to the table. A'rel sat there, with a group of young dragon riders. She took the chair next to him.

"First, let me introduce everyone. On your right is M'tol. He rides brown Fonth. Across from you is rean, who rides green Rizith. And, on my left is S'nor, who rides bronze Rinth. So, how have you enjoyed your first day at the Weyr?"

"It's wonderful. Everyone is so friendly." Said Meera.

"It's a bit different than I expected, but I love it. It's nice to relax for a bit. Working in the kitchens at Harper Hall, I was always so busy, so there really wasn't much free time."

"Well, I'm glad to hear that," A'rel said. "Fort tries to be friendly to everyone. And, as for the relaxing bit, well if you impress, you'll be busy enough, don't worry."

Meera laughed, and started eating her tender roast herd beast. The Harper's struck up a happy tune, and people started coupling up to dance. Meera couldn't help but feel a slight twinge of sadness, wishing she could be up there on the platform, playing her guitar with them. She wondered sadly if she would ever be able to play again. Her thoughts were interrupted by a tap on the shoulder.

"Would you like to join me?" A'rel asked her.

"Well, I've not really mastered the art of dancing yet," Meera said, standing up. "But, as long as you don't mind getting your feet stepped on, I'll take you up on that offer."

A'rel led her out onto the dance floor, and wrapped his arms around her waist. She let the music carry her away, and before she knew it, she had danced four songs with him.

"Can I steal your partner for a dance or two?" a familiar voice asked from behind the couple.

"Of course, Weyrleader," said A'rel. "She's a great dancer."

"I've always enjoyed music," Meera said. "I used to play guitar, until I burned my hands in a cooking accident. Now, my fingers won't bend enough to reach the frets."

"Well," said R'lon, pulling her into the next dance, "if you impress, maybe bathing and oiling your dragon will help you get more flexibility in your fingers. Then, maybe you could play guitar again. We don't have a guitar player around here. I've always enjoyed guitar music. Would you like me to find a guitar for you to practice on?"

"Oh, that would be wonderful!" Meera beamed.

The conversation and dancing went on for a while, and then R'lon led Meera over to a table.

"How long have you been blind?" He asked.

"Since birth," Meera said. "I was premature."

"You seem to get around very well. If you impress you may have to work a bit harder than the rest, but I know you can do it," R'lon said. "However, have you thought about how you will fight Thread or go between?"

"I'm not sure I will be able to fly Thread. What else can I do?" Meera queried.

"We'll find something," said R'lon, with a smile. "Maybe you can be a messenger or something. You would be very helpful, and you seem to get along well with people. That might be a great job for you to do. Also, the fact that you seem to be able to hear other dragons will possibly help out."

"That would be great," Meera said. "I really don't mind what I do, as long as I am useful in some way. I didn't even realize I could hear dragons until Teerrath spoke to me today."

"Well, we'll just have to see what happens after hatching," R'lon said.

The evening wore on, with more music and dancing, and of course, plenty of food. Meera met many more dragon riders, and other Weyrfolk. Everyone commented her on her great dancing, and she ate so much food she thought she might get sick. When she headed back to her room that night, she thought the evening had gone very well. She flopped onto her bed and was soon fast asleep.


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: Well, I don't suffer from delusions, and I'm not in the mood for a lawsuit, so, alas, Pern still isn't mine.

Chapter 4: The Hatching

Over the next few days, Meera settled in very well. She became great friends with Alya. She learned about life in the weyr, and she waited, along with everyone else, for the hatching. Fareth, one of the junior queen's of Fort, had laid a huge clutch of forty-four eggs, and one was a queen. R'lon expected them to hatch any day.

Everyone was very friendly, but Meera could feel the tension building up everywhere. Things hadn't been the same since Marina, R'lon's weyrwoman, had died two months ago. Everyone was hoping that R'lon would find a mate soon, or he would have to step down as leader of the weyr. There hadn't been another mating flight at Fort since Marina's death, but if his bronze Alanth didn't fly the next queen to rise, R'lon would have to step down. Everyone liked R'lon's style and skills in leading the weyr, but rules were rules. It was hoped that Alanth would soon find a suitable mate.

Meera woke up early one morning, with the sound of many dragons and fire lizards thrumming in her ears. She flew out of bed, and felt for her candidate's robes, knocking a glass of water off the nightstand in her haste. She cleaned up the mess, all the while cursing her blindness and anything else that came to mind, and hurried into the robes. Excitement and hope flooded through her as she ran out the door, Alya following right behind her.

When Meera and Alya got down to the hatching grounds, there were crowds everywhere. Meera could hear the voices of people sitting in the tiers, and standing around the sands. She took Alya's arm, and they stepped onto the hot sands, walking to the cluster of candidates surrounding the gold egg. Alya told her all of the eggs were rocking and shaking violently, and cracks were appearing in some of them. Meera waited, quietly wringing her hands. Perspiration dripped down her forehead, and into her eyes.

On the other side of the grounds, Meera heard an egg split, and the scrape of claws as a dragon crawled out, kreeling for its rider. Alya informed her that a tall brown-haired boy impressed the little bronze, and he announced his name as Elith. A few more eggs hatched, and then the queen egg started rocking violently. Finally, after about five more minutes, the egg split, and out sprawled the queen. She pulled herself up, and turned her neck, looking for her new rider. She pushed through the crowd of girls and stopped in front of Meera, nudging her with her nose.

_"I choose you. My name is Aylith."_

Meera turned her head towards Aylith, and her eyes were filled with shock. She couldn't believe it; she had actually impressed a dragon, and a queen for that matter. As she reached out and pulled Aylith into her arms, all of her loneliness and sadness left.

"_I'm glad you are happy!" _came Aylith's voice in her mind, along with waves of affection and love. _"But, I'm hungry!"_

Meera laughed, as Aylith nosed her in the direction of the food supplies. She grabbed a bowl of meat for Aylith, and began feeding her. Everyone looked on in amazement, as she gently took the pieces of meat from Meera's fingers. Usually, dragons, especially babies, ate rapidly and sometimes nicked their rider's fingers. However, this was not the case with Aylith. After she had polished off 4 more bowls of meat, Meera headed to the weyrling barracks, her arm resting on her dragon's back. All of her things had been moved into the junior queen's quarters, and there was a nice spacious weyr for Aylith, who immediately curled up and went to sleep. Meera organized her belongings, and then realized how hungry she was. Breakfast had been missed that morning, with the hatching going on. She headed down to the dining hall with the rich aroma of roast warie reaching her nostrils.

Upon entering, Meera heard the sound of excited chatter from many people. She recognized the voice of A'rel calling her, and headed in that direction. A'rel pushed a chair into her hand, and she sat down. The platter of warie was pressed into her hand, and she helped herself to a huge portion. "Shards, am I hungry. I hate missing breakfast!" A'rel chuckled.

"Well, what do you think? You've impressed the queen, and we have 2 feasts in 1 week." He said with a laugh. "Life couldn't get much better than that."

Meera just smiled, and they ate in silence. She was still in shock at the whole thing. There would be a lot of hard work in the future, but she wouldn't complain. Aylith was hers, and nothing could change that. She knew she would be able to overcome anything with her dragon.

When Meera finished, she said goodbye to A'rel and her other table mates. She then headed out the door behind the rest of the weyrling class. This afternoon was their first session.


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: Well, I don't suffer from delusions, and I'm not in the mood for a lawsuit, so, alas, Pern still isn't mine.

Chapter 5: First Class

"Today," weyrmaster R'vel said, when everyone had gathered, "You will learn how to bathe and oil your dragons."

The next few hours were spent oiling forty-four playful new dragonets. Aylith was the largest dragon, so it took Meera the longest. Still, she didn't mind, she had impressed, and that was all that mattered.

"_Of course you impressed, silly,"_ Aylith said. _"Dragons don't care what's on the outside of a person. Scrub my right shoulder, please! It only matters about the inside . Oooooh, that's better!"_

"Yes, and I'm glad of that," Meera said, as she headed back towards the barracks, with Aylith by her side.

"_Right now, I'll be glad for a knap." _Said Aylith, when they reached her weyr. She curled up into a not so little ball, and was soon sound asleep for the second time that day.

That sounds like a nice Idea, thought Meera, stretching out on her bed. She had about two hours left before the hatching feast.

"What are you glad for?" Alya asked, walking by Meera's weyr. "I heard you talking in the hall."

"Oh, I didn't realize I had spoken aloud," Meera said from her bed. "You can come in if you want. I was just telling Aylith how glad I was that I had impressed."

"So am I," Alya said. "I'm sorry I didn't introduce you earlier. This is Hannith. She's a green.

"

Meera was glad for Alya. She really liked her, and would enjoy lessons with her. They talked for a while. Alya told Meera what it was like being weyr bred, and Meera told Alya all about Harper Hall. Then Meera took her long awaited knap.


End file.
